Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Morgan's Six-Pack for Game 27: Vancouver Canucks

What a wonderful Tuesday night in Columbus. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, a commonly accepted gauge of the economy's health, is at all time highs and so are the Blue Jackets consecutive games of earning a point. Now I have Rita Coolidge's less popular James Bond song "All time high" stuck in my head. Good thing that United Artists thought the name of that song should be called 'All Time High' and not "Octopussy" because then this post would have gotten weird. Anyways, with spirits high 14,852 fans descended upon Nationwide Arena to see a perennial regular season contender in the Vancouver Canucks try to put an end to all things streaking. Starting next year, CBJ fans get to see less of teams like Vancouver and more teams like the Florida Panthers and New York Islanders. Hoo-Ray. But tonight was about living in the moment and basking in the glory of a legitimate winning streak. But could is last? Were the underlying economic principles really there to keep this rally going? The Jackets clawed their way into a shootout, but wound up giving away the extra point to Vancouver in the shootout on a shot that, quite frankly, shouldn't have counted.

Bond: Who are you?
Female pilot: My name is 8-game point streak.
Bond: I must be dreaming.

1. This first beer is for something special called "That Feeling." And that is the briefest feeling of slight disappointment when the game went to overtime tonight. I wish the Jackets found a way to win this game in regulation, we can't afford to give teams that extra point. I'll tell you what, I like having that feeling lately, it means the CBJ are competing well. I like the 8 game point streak - but ignorance is not bliss.

2. Mark Letestu, Ye hath been pitched in battle for a fortnight and you must have the king's thirst for the frosty brew. Yes, I'm part of his admiration society fo sho. But, if you listen to the DKM Hockey Podcast, you'll know that one of my fears is that the Blue Jackets heavily rely on a guy making $625k a year to muck out goals in front of the net. I will drink to Letestu and I love that he's still finding the back of the net. I will also pound a beer for myself after seeing him as the anchor man in tonight's shootout.

3. Todd Richards, this one's for you. I say this with all due respect: I applaud you for getting this group of guys to buy into your blue collar game plan. It's exciting from the aspect that by clogging the middle of the ice, the Blue Jackets are staying in the games until the end. We get a couple of gifted 30 goal scorers into the lineup and good things are sure to come. Although, when we do get some more skilled players the break-out is going to need to be a little more dynamic when 5-on-5, but I'll save that worry for next year.

4. Sergei Bobrovsky, here is a beer. I'd also like you to share that beer with the X-men Wolverine in the hopes that he tells you were to get your bones grafted with that Adam-ant-ium metal alloy stuff. You're going to see a lot of bodies, high sticks, and run-ins pretty soon with the style of dzone coverage your teammates are playing in front of you. It's also worth noting that your play is a significant part of this 5-0-3 points streak, so don't get hurt. Maybe find a way to steal Wolverine's healing powers too, just in case. "Don't drink, don't smoke. What do you do?"

5. Matt Calvert - way to get LAID OUT by David Booth, only to return to the game a short while later. That's what you do, collect yourself the best you can, make sure you're ok, and get right back out there and play the game. He hit your hard, fair, and clean. A light stick tap to Booth as well - you could have decided to end Calvert's career on that play and you didn't. You met him with a nice, clean "keep your head up, kid" shoulder plant. As a side note, I'm not sure I really appreciate Jared Boll's hit on Barker in the second period. I am not a Boll-hater, I am also not a fan of the hit he put on Barker. Watch the replay and you'll see Boll get his arms up on a guy with his head down while he's reaching for a puck. It's not so much Barker's reaching, it's that Boll got his arms up. If the league and my blog-counter parts are serious about player safety, getting rid of those hits is step one. I'm not calling Boll dirty, I'm just using this as an example of the types hits (notice I didn't use the word BODY CHECK) that need to be eliminated, or at least, minimized in all of hockey. Rant complete. Good beer Calvert.

6. My final beersky goes to Brandon Dubinsky. It was nice to have you back on the ice tonight. For some odd reason, just having you on the ice adds a weird kind of legitimacy to the team. It's the attitude, swagger, or the way you part your hair - I dunno. But this feels like a nitty gritty team with snarl when you're out there. I'd also kind of like to see you pull off being the doppleganger of Steve Perry from Journey by seeing you grow a mullet.

Were the Jackets out worked tonight, no. This is not a resounding no. This was a 'give up nearly forty shots and block another fifteen' kind of not out-worked. It had a "bend but don't break" feel to it. The hard work and driving the net is keeping the CBJ in game. The Jackets played their 'clog up the shower drain' style that led to another point in 8 consecutive games. Letestu gets a goal on a good bounce. Unless Bobrovsky goes all Clint Malarchuk on us (the OCD part) he's all but assured himself of an offer from the Blue Jackets this off season. Bob will either stay this hot the rest of his career, or he will much sooner than later, return to earth from whatever goalie-god temple he's been visiting. Unless this power play starts scoring like it's in the NHL, I won't let my mind drift towards the post season.

But I shouldn't care about sustainability and growth, right? I should just care that we got wins and points in 8 straight, right? I should just shut up and be happy. It's like just looking at the Dow Jones, seeing 14,500, and not caring how it got there. I should just be happy it's 14,500. Trust me, I am very happy the Jackets have points in 8 straight. But unlike the Dow, the Jackets have earned those wins and gained respectability. Should Bobrovsky cool off and the bounces stop falling for the Jackets, there's still an underlying basis of good fundamental hockey that will continue to drive this team forward. Once the massive government deficit spending and bond purchases by the Fed stop, the Dow is back down to 9,500 and quickly. I wish I could invest in the Jackets. I like what Jarmo and JD are selling.

The Bull Market on the CBJ continues on Thursday night when the Blackhawks fans look to put a stop to the Blue Jackets points streak at Nationwide Arena. Oh, how the tables have turned. Don't think I haven't been chirping via texts to certain Blackhawks personnel over the CBJ point streak, because I have been. Then he send me pictures of a 2011 Stanley Cup ring and I feel shame. Then I get free. And send another belligerent text.

3 comments:

Many have taken the stand that we should enjoy the streak and not worry about the future. I contend that the streak IS the future. Think about it. With all the times the Jackets have finished 29th or 30th, how often have they had the first overall pick? I'll tell you. Exactly once, when they selected Rick Nash, and they had to trade to get that one! But with three picks in the first round, it is not inconceivable that two of those picks are lottery picks. Regardless of final position, that is an advantage, especially when this year's draft is so strong. So, relax, enjoy the streak and GO JACKETS!

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